Come What May
by PenguinRegina
Summary: A series of ficlets about what may have happened after DA2 ended. I know all of this will be moot in a year's time (or not!) but these are some of the after-end game stories that have come to me. Please read, review and enjoy! All characters and settings belong to Bioware.


**Rules of Misdirection**

"I don't think we're going to find the Champion in this shitty little town" the young templar grumbled to his peeved superior.

Their whole patrol had been searching for weeks on the wisps of hearsay and rumors up and down the coast. The young man was really just voicing what the entire patrol had been thinking. However, that didn't make him any more popular with their captain.

"Why don't you go tell that to the Lady Seeker then, Nathen?" the captain growled at the recruit. It was not the last time he felt that the green boy should have been left at their Tower losing some of the wetness from behind his ears. He was some baron's youngest son and had been dumped in his garrison. Why should someone's witless brat be his burden? His dark thoughts were interrupted by a figure walking into the tavern where they had been fitfully waiting for over a week.

A fully armored warrior wearing the distinctive Kirkwall emblem on his shield oh his back walked towards the back of the tavern. The captain was so incredulous that he actually pulled out the already-memorized picture and description of the Champion circulated by the Divine's agent only known as the Nightingale.

The armored figure went towards the back of the tavern. The captain silently stood and watched the man slip through a door.

"Captain Ewen? Are you well ser?" Nathen asked. The boy's too-fine voice and overly enunciated syllables snapped the captain out of his shock.

"Grab your weapon boy and follow in silence." he said walking quickly towards the tavern keeper, not bothering to see if the recruit followed. With his prey in sight, there was no time to be babysitting the young lordling.

"Where is the Champion?" The captain growled in the tavern keeper's face as he pulled him up by his shirtfront.

The man gasped and blubbered a bit. Captain Ewen, a large, red-headed man at the very end of his very limited patience, shook the small man. "Tell me and you will be spared." his tone making it perfectly clear that he was not in a joking mood.

"Meeting someone in the back, but the other party hasn't showed yet!" He quavered. "They paid anonymously! If I had known, I would have reported them! I'm a devoted Andrastean! Maker save me!"

The captain released the man with a scoff. "Out of our way then. Clear the tavern and report this to the Chantry now."

"Yes Captain! I shall, immediately!" The cowering tavern keeper said, turning to the already emptying room. The local barflies smelled trouble and were clearing out.

"It's him?!" Nathen asked incredulously. The rest of their unit was sweeping the dock and keeping an eye on the people moving in and out of town. He had thought he had pulled a cushy duty, staying in the tavern with the captain. The young man's mind was filling with all the stories of the Champion's prowess in battle. Everyone had heard the story of his single handed combat with the Qunari Arishok and defeating the man-beast! He had also fought with Chantry forces before, leaving few survivors.

The stories were near implausible and often contradictory. Some said Hawke was a warrior wielding a heavy battle-axe, others claimed Hawke was actually a woman, deadly and beautiful whirling twin blades. Others even claimed that Hawke was an apostate mage, never laying a weapon on them, but summoning dread magics against them. Whatever the truth was, Hawke was invariably deadly.

"Captain, should we get the others? Hawke is a dangerous criminal!" Nathen said as he hurried to keep up with the large man.

"There is no time. You will go around and guard the back entrance. I will try to apprehend him here. He is alone. Hurry boy! I will not lose my prize because of your...fear!" Captain Ewen was sick of the youth's cowardice. He would do this himself. He could see himself handing the blasted heathen to the Lady Seeker. Perhaps a promotion to Val Royeaux would follow. He smiled predatorily as he pulled his sword from its scabbard. He leaned against the door, listening.

Silence.

His smile widened. Good, the man was alone.

Without any further ado, he kicked the door open, causing a near explosion of wood and splinters.

Ewen had scrapped and fought his way to captain. He was the son of farmers and had had no political advantages getting into the Templars, but his devotion and raw fighting talent had gotten him here, captain of his own garrison.

The element of surprise was on his side and he was a formidable warrior. He was confident he would bring the criminal Hawke to holy justice.

Once inside however, the captain was met with a different scene than he had envisioned.

Instead of a startled quarry, the warrior was already in a fighting stance, a double-handed sword drawn, the Kirkwall shield lying on a table.

"So, the traitor tavern keeper warned you? No matter. He will be dealt with afterwards. Hawke, former Champion of Kirkwall, come with me. The Chantry would have you answer for your crimes." Captain Ewen declared, his body itching for a fight. The Champion was smaller than he had been led to believe. Still, he yearned to try his mettle against this man. He had heard too much and believed little of it. Bested men often exaggerated the prowess of those who defeated them. He longed to see the skills of the Champion of Kirkwall for himself.

The man gave a chuckle from under his helm. "One templar? The Chantry shall have to do better than this to trap the Champion of Kirkwall" a deep voice answered.

The templar gave a savage grin. "We shall see." and with that he charged the outlaw with his shield, planning to bash the smaller man with it and use his greater size to his advantage.

Once again, he was in for a revelation.

The man moved faster than his eyes could follow. A blue nimbus glowed from under the armor, the greatsword slicing and knocking his shield out of his hands before he could even piece together what had happened.

"Maker's breath! I will defeat you apostate!" The templar cried, using his divine power to inhibit the apostate's magic. He had yet to fail at subduing a recalcitrant mage. He gripped his sword tightly, readying to strike a killing blow. The Seeker may want Hawke alive, but he would do his duty as a Templar first and foremost!

"Apostate? I think not." The warrior replied quietly. Faster than Ewen could block, the man had slammed into him, still glowing, a swift blow disarming him. The smaller man pinned him against a wall with more strength than his frame would belie. The entire fight had taken mere moments.

"What sort of demon-spawn are you?" the Templar growled as he fought the warrior's grip for breath.

"Demon-spawn is a new one for me." There was definitely a trace of grim humor in the deep voice. Ewen seethed.

"Let me go! I command you, in the name of the Maker!" Ewen demanded with failing strength. The man was choking the life out of him, still glowing blue despite Ewen using all his talents to dispel magic.

"I don't take orders well. You might ask my former master about that." The man said, his hand suddenly passing though the captain's armor, right into his chest and...Ewen briefly thought he saw the man take his heart out.

The templar captain crumpled silently on the floor.

A curvaceous figure sauntered out of the shadows towards the warrior. "You were toying with him." the woman spoke, humor evident in her voice. She reached the man and removed his helm, revealing snowy hair and caramel skin, a shade lighter than her own. The man shook his hair back, making his pointed ears visible.

"How does Hawke choose to wear all this armor? I can barely move in this getup." The elf complained as he bent to remove the boots. The helm was bad enough, pinching his ears. The boots were so heavy and clumsy. He didn't want to wear them a moment more than necessary.

"You know how Hawke is. " The woman shrugged eloquently, her whole body moving sensuously. Every move was an opportunity for seduction with her. This particular enticement was currently lost on her companion as he struggled out of the boots.

"Humph. We'll have to track down Varric's man and send our report." The elf said, shedding armor, revealing a muscled physique made more remarkable by the intricate, glowing lines that covered his skin.

"I arranged for him to meet us tonight by the Sea Witch." She said, enjoying the sight of the elf's body.

He raised his head and caught her gaze, giving a half smile. "So, we sail tonight?"

"Yes. we're done here. You made quite a spectacle of yourself in town. You were spotted by no less than twenty pious citizens, of which at least ten already reported it to the Chantry. At least that's what I heard while I was in there this afternoon." The woman gave one last salacious look at the elf as he redressed in common peasant clothes, topping it all with a hooded cloak and a scarf.

"What about the other templar?" He asked as he stored the armor in a leather sack along with the shield and short sword. The greatsword he kept at his back. It might call attention to him , but not wearing it would feel indecent.

A slow smile spread on the woman's luscious lips. "Ah, our young templar was not as eager to meet his Maker as his captain here." She chuckled. "A wink, a smile and some sleeping powder were all it took. I'm sure that he will tell anyone and everyone about his heroic struggle with the dastardly Hawke and how the man overpowered him and left him for dead." She approached the elf again, running a hand through his hair. "You know, you look pretty sexy in that armor. You should wear it for me tonight."

With a raised eyebrow, the warrior snatched her hand and pulled her close to him, pressing a passionate kiss on her lips. "I'll see what I can do." he said huskily. "A templar witness is always good. It lends credibility to Varric's preposterous stories." He said, letting her go with a wink that carried a promise.

"Where do we sail to now, captain?" he asked, hefting the sack easily over his shoulder. At a glance he was just another elf working some menial job in town. Albeit, a well armed elf.

"It's my turn to be Hawke, so perhaps Antiva? Those backward fools think women are merely decorative. I enjoy messing with their perceptions." The woman said as she searched the dead templar's pockets, taking a few baubles and coins.

"You will certainly be a learning experience for them then. I'll meet you on the ship. We shouldn't leave together." he said heading towards the smashed doorway.

"I won't be seen if I don't want to. I'll be waiting for you there." she said , melting into the shadows.

The elf gave a shrug and walked out of the back room and through the abandoned bar. Outside he glanced from side to side until he spotted the tavern keeper peering from between some trees across the road. He shook his head at the man, the pre-arranged signal for the tavern keeper to stay away.

The tavern keeper disappeared into the woods. In a few days, he'd be back with a hefty sack of coins to help him soothe his frazzled nerves. So far the dwarf and his companions had done exactly as they had agreed to. Sure, Templars getting killed in your establishment tended to be bad, but having the Champion of Kirkwall do the deed, well... that gave you notoriety. That meant curiosity seekers, and those tended to get thirsty while they heard the whole story... All in all, it had been a most profitable venture for the tavern keeper.

The elf hoisted his pack and made for the docks. He walked unmolested through the quiet streets and reached the docks in good time. Fishermen and sailors stumbled about, probably up to insalubrious activities themselves. He looked for ship that had brought him here and soon found it. She sported a grotesque figurehead , a beautiful woman's body, but her face was frozen in a rictus of anger and fury. The Sea Witch wasn't what most sailors called her, but it did rhyme with that name. He walked up the gang plank and avoided the men sleeping on deck. He made his way to the captain's quarters.

The woman was sitting at her desk, writing on a tiny piece of paper that he knew would be en route to Varric in the morning, as soon as the messenger birds were awake. It was important to make sure that the Champion of Kirkwall was not appearing in two places at once. Their ruse only worked if it kept the Seeker focused on them and not on the real Hawke's movements, who honestly, even they did not really know.

The elf set down his bundle in a footlocker and sat on the bed.

"Took you long enough" the woman said, putting the note away and stepping around her desk, sauntering towards the elf. She draped herself familiarly on his lap.

A slow smile spread on his face as their lips met. "I took the scenic route." he said, teasing her once they paused for breath.

"Well, I have much better scenery to show you, oh Champion of Kirkwall." she said with a throaty chuckle.

"Oh I know you do, I know you do." he responded covering her lips with his again.

Their lives were full of danger and uncertainty, but the lives they had, they owed to Hawke, so they would enjoy themselves and do all they could to keep the real Champion safe.


End file.
